Pardon Processing Times

Pardon Processing Times Have Ballooned to 38 Months!

Status Update for Backlog of Pardon Applications

These pardon processing times apply to applications submitted under the old Pardon Rules (between July 2010 and February 22, 2012).

As of December 2012:

There were an estimated 22,000 outstanding applications; and

The Parole Board of Canada hired and trained 22 people in December 2012 to help work on the backlog.

As of March 2013:

The Parole Board of Canada (PBC) is currently processing the following applications:

Summary Only Offences: Accepted in March 2011

Indictable Only Offences: Accepted in September 2010

As of April 15, 2013:

The Parole Board of Canada (PBC) is currently processing the following applications:

Summary Only Offences: Accepted in April 2011

Indictable Only Offences: Accepted in October 2010

As of June 22, 2013: REPORTED BY PBC

The Parole Board of Canada (PBC) is currently processing the following applications:

Summary Only Offences: Accepted in June 2011

Indictable Only Offences: Accepted in October 2010

As of December 23, 2013: REPORTED BY PBC

The Parole Board of Canada (PBC) is currently processing the following applications:

Summary Only Offences: Accepted in October 2011

Indictable Only Offences: Accepted in November 2010

What does Accepted mean?

Accepted means the application was complete and you met basic eligibility requirements. The PBC issues a letter confirming your application was accepted. Your file then sits (ie. nothing happens) until it is ready to be assigned to an officer (enquiry stage). Though the Parole Board only appears to have progressed one month on indictable files (from September 2010 to November 2010), we have no further outstanding files for 2010, and it would appear they are well into 2011 for indictable files. Accordingly, we believe their website is out-of-date with respect to indictable files as we have only 3 outstanding files with indictable offences which were accepted between February 17, 2011 and June 30, 2011. Otherwise, under the old rules, a bulk of our outstanding files are from September 6, 2011 to February 22, 2012. October 2011 appears to be accurate for summary offences. A total of 62.5% of our backlogged Pardons submitted between July 2010 and February 22, 2012 have been granted, with only 37.5% remaining. As the Parole Board of Canada resumed work on old files in January 2013, I would estimate that the balance of files under the old rules could be completed within the next 6 months. Here’s hoping!

What happens when my file reaches the enquiry stage?

When your application reaches the enquiry stage, a letter is issued confirming this. It normally takes around 3 months for a decision to be made after your file reaches this stage. However, it could take longer than 3 months depending upon the complexity of your file.

Pardon Processing Times

This means it is taking around 26 months for a Record Suspension to be granted if you have summary-only offences. Or, it is taking an average 28 to 38 months if you have one or more indictable offences.

What kind of decision can I expect?

your Record Suspension will be granted (previously called Pardon); or

there will be a request for additional information; or

there will be a proposal to deny (following which you will be allowed to appeal the decision with our help).

Will you keep me posted as to the status of my file?

Yes, we will keep you posted. We have sent all clients a link to this site (along with the date their file was accepted) so that they can monitor the progress of the Parole Board of Canada. In addition, we will notify all clients during each of the following steps:

when your letter is assigned to an officer (enquiry stage);

if there is a proposal to deny or request for further information; and